Chapter 1457: As If Facing a Formidable Enemy
Before he defected from the Underworld Office, Yang Haoran had only cultivated one Spirit Art: the Spirit Transformation Art, a technique to preserve his soul at the final critical moment.
As his own strength grew, and he came into contact with more and more experts, he found that the Spirit Transformation Art was, to some extent, a "chicken rib" for him at his current level of power.
The reason was simple: at their level of power, the destructive force unleashed during battle was simply too astonishing. Once dead in combat, it was difficult to preserve one's soul; the probability of being beaten to the point of Soul Transformation was very high, unless the opponent intentionally controlled their power to avoid harming the soul.
Although this Spirit Art was somewhat of a "chicken rib", it was better to have cultivated it than not. There was no harm in having an extra method to preserve one's soul; what if he actually ended up using it someday?
That was exactly what Yang Haoran thought when he took the risk to cultivate this Spirit Art in the first place—to leave himself a fallback plan. Even though this Spirit Art seemed increasingly like a "chicken rib" to him now, he never completely denied its value, nor did he regret cultivating it back then.
Over the years, Yang Haoran had collected a large number of Spirit Arts. The vast majority of these Spirit Arts were collected by the Myriad Ghost Grotto, led by Tang Shi. While he had also gathered quite a few from other channels, they paled in comparison to those collected by the Myriad Ghost Grotto.
Among the many Spirit Arts he collected, there were high-level ones and naturally low-level ones. Many of these Spirit Arts made even Yang Haoran envious, because once cultivated, they would undoubtedly lead to a significant increase in one's own strength. However, he simply dared not cultivate them. Once he cultivated too many Spirit Arts, the Yin Spirit Power within his body would undergo a qualitative change. When the number of Spirit Arts he mastered reached a certain level, his Yin Spirit Power might even transform into the Spirit Power unique to Spirit Mediums.
As an Underworld Official, Yang Haoran, of course, dared not do this. Let alone allowing his Yin Spirit Power to transform into Spirit Power, even a slight qualitative change in his Yin Spirit Power could lead to him being discovered. At that point, Yang Haoran would undoubtedly be treated as a traitor by the Underworld Office; there would be no other possibility.
Now, the situation was different. He had already become a traitor to the Underworld Office and was even wanted by them. Furthermore, he had even signed a contract with Zhong Siyu, making Zhong Siyu his Guardian Spirit.
Given all this, he had no reason to shrink back or be timid anymore. He began to select and cultivate some Spirit Arts suitable for himself, completely without any psychological burden. The cultivation of Spirit Arts would only cause his Yin Spirit Power to undergo a qualitative change, not disappear, so he naturally felt no burden.
From the time he transferred to Half-Moon Island until now, Yang Haoran had cultivated several Spirit Arts. These Spirit Arts were all carefully selected by him, and he found them very suitable.
It wasn't that Yang Haoran didn't want to cultivate more Spirit Arts. He had the resources, but not the time. After all, Spirit Arts weren't something one could learn just by looking; they required time to comprehend and also time to practice. It was clearly impossible for him to master a large number of Spirit Arts in a short period. However, he did want to master more, which was why he was currently studying and comprehending Spirit Arts.
Time passed little by little. After an unknown duration, a spatial rift suddenly appeared in the area enveloped by Yang Haoran's restrictive barrier.
Such a sudden occurrence immediately attracted the attention of Zhong Siyu and Ma Ling. Ma Ling had not yet finished setting up her formation, but with such a sudden event, how could she possibly continue? Her movements paused, her brows furrowed, and she looked at the area where the spatial rift appeared with a serious expression.
Zhong Siyu, who had her eyes tightly shut and was fully focused on refining the Soul Crystal within her body, also opened her eyes at this moment. Like Ma Ling, her gaze was fixed on the location where the spatial rift appeared. Unlike Ma Ling, she neither frowned nor had such a serious expression; instead, a smile blossomed on her face, though the smile gave off a cruel impression.
Yang Haoran's reaction was completely different from the two of them. He remained focused, looking intently at the floating characters before him, studying the Spirit Art, as if he hadn't sensed the spatial rift appearing.
Ma Ling and Zhong Siyu each had their own reactions because they both knew that Yang Haoran had returned to the restrictive barrier shortly after leaving. Therefore, whoever opened the spatial rift at this moment had to be someone else, and it was very likely enemies. That's why they didn't continue what they were doing and instead focused on the spatial rift, preparing to face the enemy.
Under the gaze of Ma Ling and Zhong Siyu, the spatial rift rapidly expanded. Figures emerged one after another from the spatial rift, and in just a short while, twenty-eight more figures appeared in their vision.
These twenty-eight suddenly appearing individuals varied in height, build, and weight; there were men and women. However, they had two things in common.
The first commonality: all twenty-eight of them exuded a chilling Ghost Qi, and the power fluctuations emanating from them all, without exception, belonged to the ghost path. In other words, they were not living people, but ghostly entities cultivating the ghost path.
The second commonality: they all wore uniform black clothing and Smiling Face Masks on their faces. It was clear at a glance that they belonged to the same organization. While their Smiling Face Masks seemed fine at first glance, giving off a gentle, approachable, quite pleasant impression, if one looked at them a few more times, the feeling would change. Instead, it became extremely eerie; one felt as if an inexplicable killing intent was hidden beneath that smile, sending shivers down their spine.
Ma Ling's face changed drastically, and even her body trembled slightly. The power within her body completely erupted at that moment, holding nothing back. The appearance of these twenty-eight people clearly brought her immense shock. Judging from her expression and reaction, she seemed to recognize these individuals, otherwise, she wouldn't have reacted so strongly, looking as if facing a formidable enemy.
Zhong Siyu's reaction was equally agitated, but while agitated, her excitement and Ma Ling's excitement were two extremes. She wasn't excited out of nervousness; she was excited out of joy. This could be seen from the smile blooming on her face, though this smile was extremely ferocious, extremely cruel, and the gaze she cast upon these twenty-eight people was like that of a bloodthirsty beast spotting its prey.
Zhong Siyu and Ma Ling's reactions diverged into two extremes because Zhong Siyu had no fear of these people whatsoever and already regarded them as food. These individuals all cultivated the ghost path, and their realms seemed to be not weak. Such ghostly entities would be a great tonic for her. If she were to devour all these ghostly entities, the benefits to her would be self-evident. Furthermore, she didn't believe these people would be her opponents, which was why she was excited out of joy.
"Heh heh, why are you panicking? With me and Yang Haoran here, are you still worried they'll eat you?"
With a flash, Zhong Siyu appeared beside Ma Ling, then spoke with a sinister grin, her tone carrying unconcealed mockery. She didn't flash to Yang Haoran's side but appeared beside Ma Ling first because she sensed that these masked ghost cultivators possessed a certain level of strength. To ensure Ma Ling's safety, she immediately appeared beside her.
As for why she didn't protect Yang Haoran, in her opinion, there was no need. She knew Yang Haoran's strength, and even if his injuries hadn't fully recovered, he wasn't someone just anyone could harm, so she wasn't worried about his safety.
Upon hearing this, Ma Ling not only didn't get angry but actually let out a sigh of relief. Zhong Siyu's reminder gave her confidence. In her view, it was indeed as Zhong Siyu said: with Yang Haoran and Zhong Siyu here, she truly had nothing to panic about. Even if the sky were to fall, Yang Haoran and Zhong Siyu would be there to support her. Although she knew these newcomers were powerful, she didn't believe they would be a match for Yang Haoran and Zhong Siyu.
With renewed confidence, Ma Ling's complexion visibly improved, and her inner turmoil consequently calmed.
"You know them?"
Zhong Siyu asked with a sinister grin. Ma Ling nodded in response.
"I do. They are very famous throughout the New Beginning Realm; it would be hard not to know them!"
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